A Gala and Cheese Sandwich
by MWolfL
Summary: It's Grand Galloping Gala time again, with extra guests. Including one who turns out to have feelings for a mare, but is insecure about it. CheeseXPinkie.
1. A Unique Cheesie Sense

Cheese Sandwich was walking between parties, as usual, when he got a weird Cheesie Sense. It was weird because it caused thumping in his chest, which had never happened before.

"Wow, never got that Cheesie Sense before." Cheese told Boneless 2 with surprise. "Well, I don't know what the thumping means, but the rest of the sense tells me to go to Ponyville so I guess I'll find out when I get there."

He went on the journey to Ponyville, and when he finally got there...

"Hey Cheese Sandwich!" Pinkie beamed as she saw him coming.

"Hey Pinkie Pie!" Cheese grinned back, always glad to see her. "So, any important parties coming up? Because I got a unique Cheesie Sense that told me to come here."

"Well not in Ponyville, but there is one coming up in Canterlot." Pinkie smiled. "The Grand Galloping Gala! It's usually one of those fancy-shmancy parties, but my friends and I have been livening it up ever since we first went. Twilight especially has helped with that, and lately Spike and Discord have also contributed...oo, I think I just figured out your Cheesie Sense! My family is too busy to go with me this year, so it's telling you that you should come as my Plus One!"

"Plus One?" Cheese nearly blushed, not knowing what it meant but liking the sound of it.

"Yeah, sometimes those fancy-shmancy parties have limited room so those who are invited are only allowed to bring one guest. Hence 'Plus One'."

"Oh." Cheese smiled. "Well, even though I can't help with the planning I'd love to go with you."

"Great! I'd better take you to Rarity so that she can get your tux ready." Pinkie grinned before zipping off.

Cheese instantly zipped off after her. Once they got to Carousel Boutique...

"Rarity!" Pinkie called.

A startled gasp was heard, and Rarity came out irritatedly wearing a measuring tape around her neck along with her sewing glasses.

"Pinkie dear, you really must learn to not do that. What if I accidentally stick a pin into somepony?" Rarity gently scolded.

"Oopsie, sorry Rarity I forgot." Pinkie rubbed the back of her head sheepishly. "I was just extra-excited because an old friend is here and is going with me to the Grand Galloping Gala."

"Oh...why Cheese Sandwich! It's delightful to see you again." Rarity beamed. "My goodness...it's been months hasn't it?"

"Yes, since Pinkie's last birthday party." Cheese confirmed. "One of the best parties I ever attended actually."

"Also one of the best you ever threw!" Pinkie grinned.

"Well, at least we had the foresight to keep Pinkie busy by playing a game with Rainbow Dash while the rest of worked on the preparations." Rarity giggled.

"Oh yes...I remember you told me about the first surprise birthday party you threw for Pinkie." Cheese winced. "Sorry I wasn't there at the time to help out."

"It's okay, the important thing is that we know you now." Rarity smiled. "Now, I'll be ready to get started on your tux in a minute. I'm just making last-minute adjustments to the Cutie Mark Crusaders' gowns."

"Sis, can you please finish up with our dresses?" Sweetie Belle called out from another room. "We've got another Cutie Mark Crusader mission to get working on!"

"I'll be there in a second!" Rarity called back. "Better get back to them before they decide to leave with their dresses still on."

"No problem. Oh, is it okay if I try on some tuxes you already have out? I never wore one before so I should probably get used to wearing them." Cheese explained.

"Why of course, best to make sure you're comfortable enough to enjoy the Gala after all." Rarity smiled. "Just fold them neatly on the bench when you're done, I'll put them back later."

"Thanks." Cheese smiled back.

With Pinkie's help Cheese then started trying on the tuxes (that is Pinkie fetched the tuxes and passed them to Cheese through the curtain without looking inside the dressing room). Once he found one that fit comfortably he started walking around a bit trying to get used to it.

"Gee, you look pretty good in a tux." Pinkie smiled.

This time Cheese blushed.

"Heh...thanks...oh, where's Boneless? I'd like to see him again." Cheese smiled, changing the subject.

Pinkie's face fell and her mane deflated a little, instantly worrying Cheese.

"Oh no...is Boneless okay?" Cheese asked worriedly.

"Well...it's kinda complicated...did you hear of Tirek?" Pinkie asked.

"I think so...evil magic-stealing centaur right?" Cheese asked. "I mean I travel so much that I didn't encounter him, but I did hear about him from the towns and cities I visited."

"You got it. Well because of his magic-stealing ability my friends and I couldn't stop him the usual way, but not long before Tirek attacked Twilight got this special box from the Tree of Harmony, where our original powers came from. We couldn't unlock it at first, until after Tirek attacked. Then a bunch of gifts we got from various ponies - plus Discord - suddenly transformed into keys and unlocked the box, giving us these new rainbow powers that allowed us to defeat Tirek. The box then buried itself into the ground and formed into a crystal tree-shaped castle, where Twilight now lives. That's...That's what happened to Boneless, he was one of the keys." Pinkie then hung her head, a little worried that Cheese might get mad at her.

"Oh..." Cheese said sadly.

There was an awkward pause.

"Well...I am going to miss Boneless...but even though I'm a little sad I'm not upset." Cheese sadly smiled. "Instead I'm just proud that Boneless helped save Equestria. And it wasn't your fault, obviously Boneless was meant to be a hero key from the very beginning."

"Yeah." Pinkie smiled, feeling better.

Oh just to explain: after Rainbow Dash's Birthaversary the only times Cheese visited Ponyville were during Pinkie's birthdays (no other birthdays since Ponyville already had Pinkie to take care of those), and since he was so busy planning and enjoying those parties he kept forgetting to ask about Boneless before. In fact this was the first time he and Pinkie could actually have a non-party related conversation, since they usually were too caught up in her birthday celebration to talk about anything besides parties.

Cheese was grateful for this too, he wanted to get to know Pinkie outside of the subject of parties. After all she was the mare who inspired him, as well as the mare he...well...loved.


	2. The Gala's New Guests

Now when Rarity mentioned the Cutie Mark Crusaders she didn't just mean the founders Apple Bloom, Scootaloo, and Sweetie Belle. They got their own invitations for the first time this year, meaning they could take their own Plus Ones. Apple Bloom's of course was Babs Seed, who was sleeping over at the Apple Farm for the week.

Then there was Gabby the griffon, except she was coming as Gilda's Plus One. Gilda had been invited as well, and invited Gabby to go with her so that she could see her Cutie Mark Crusader friends. Gabby of course was more than happy to come. This meant that Gilda as well as Gabby was there getting their gowns too, though Gilda insisted on a simple gown. Gabby on the other hand didn't mind a fancy gown as long as it was similar to her fellow Crusaders' gowns.

As for Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle's Plus Ones, they decided to invite Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon so Diamond and Silver were also getting their dresses fitted. Humorously, Scootaloo and Sweetie already knew that Spoiled Rich would be shocked by her daughter being able to go to the ball thanks to the ones she dubbed Blank Flanks...so they decided to take advantage of that:

It was a few weeks before the Gala, just after everypony got their invitations. Since Apple Bloom had already decided to take Babs Seed Scootlaoo and Sweetie went to Diamond's house on their own.

They were in luck, Diamond had just gone outside to meet up with Silver and Spoiled Rich was still in the doorway.

"Diamond, Silver!" Scootaloo called.

"Hi guys!" Diamond beamed.

"Hey, what are you two doing here without Apple Bloom?" Silver asked curiously, since the Crusaders usually visited them as a trio.

"Oh she's busy calling her cousin Babs Seed, so we decided to come here without her." Sweetie smiled.

"Yeah, you see we were just stopping by for a quick moment to ask you something." Scootaloo grinned before showing her Gala ticket. "Would you two like to come to the Grand Galloping Gala with Sweetie and me as our 'Plus Ones'?"

Spoiled Rich dropped her mouth open.

"Are you serious?" Diamond gasped.

"I certainly would love to come!" Silver beamed.

"Uh-" Spoiled Rich hesitated.

Diamond gave her a stern/expectant look.

"Er...of course you should go dear..." Spoiled Rich gave in mostly because, well, this was the Grand Galloping Gala they were talking about.

"Great!" Diamond grinned. "Say girls, we should go talk to Rarity about our gowns. How about we go get Apple Bloom and then head to the Carousel Boutique?"

"Yeah!" The other girls agreed.

They ran off as Spoiled Rich tried to process what happened.

"Well well well."

Startled, Spoiled Rich turned and saw Spike standing there smirking, having happened to be nearby during the whole thing.

"Oh Prince Spike, forgive me I didn't see you there!" Spoiled Rich quickly bowed.

"Forget about it." Spike shrugged, still smirking.

Normally Spike hated it when others bowed to him...except when they happened to be stuck-up snobs like Spoiled Rich. So, in this case, he let her bow as long as she wanted. Heck, if nothing else it was refreshing to see her show some humility, even if it was the social-climbing sort of humility.

"Funny though, you used to dismiss Apple Bloom and her friends simply because they didn't have their Cutie Marks." Spike continued. "Yet Diamond Tiara probably would have never been able to go to the Grand Galloping Gala if she hadn't befriended them. Irony, what can you do?"

Chuckling, Spike then walked away leaving Spoiled Rich still bowing. At least until he disappeared, then Spoiled Rich got back up feeling quite the foal.

Now, back to almost-Gala-time...

The Crusaders had just finished trying on those last-minute adjustments to their gowns that Rarity was working on, and after taking care of their Cutie Mark mission they headed in their separate directions. This was mostly because Scootaloo was supposed to have met Rainbow Dash in a meadow earlier, plus Apple Bloom and Babs Seed were needed for a few chores back on the farm.

"Hey Scoots, what kept ya?" Rainbow smiled. "Another Cutie Mark Mission?"

"Yeah, though before that Rarity wanted us to try on a few last-minute adjustments to our gowns." Scootaloo chuckled.

"Ah, say no more. Well at least it couldn't have been as bad as when my friends and I got Rarity to create our own versions of gowns." Rainbow winced. "Never want to go through that again."

"At least yours was cool, though yeah the others did look as if they were heading to a costume party instead of a fancy gala." Scootaloo nodded.

"True, in fact that's why we kept the gowns. We're thinking of waiting a few more years until most ponies had forgotten about them, and then wearing them on Nightmare Night." Rainbow chuckled.

"Good idea." Scootaloo chuckled back. "So what did you want to see me about?"

"Soarin has the day off and was going to spend it with us, but I think some last-minute emergencies came up since he's late too."

"Ah."

And then who should show up but Zephyr Breeze. This is gonna be good...

"Oh you have got to be kidding me..." Rainbow muttered.

"Hey Rainbows, just the awesome mare I was looking for." Zephyr flirted. "You'll never guess the great news, not only do I have a job at a salon in Manehattan but I even got my own house. It's just the place for you too, but you really don't have to say anything: of course I'll marry you, in fact I'd be honored to be your husband. Just think, we-"

"Hey, leave my mom alone!" Scootaloo snapped, instantly noticing Rainbow's major discomfort.

Zephyr blanched and backed away shocked.

"Mom?" He repeated. "Wha-? Rainbows you're already married?"

"No." Rainbow scoffed, irritated that despite Zephyr's supposed crush on her he couldn't bother to keep up with any news about her. "Scootaloo accidentally lost her parents in a fire so I adopted her. What, Fluttershy never told you?"

"Um...she probably did in a past letter but I didn't see that part..." Zephyr said awkwardly.

Rainbow was willing to bet that was because the part of the letter that mentioned her adopting Scootaloo also mentioned that she and Soarin were now dating.

"But that doesn't matter, any filly you love enough to adopt is awesome enough to be a daughter to me too." Zephyr quickly recovered before turning to Scootaloo. "So what do you say, would you love to have an awesome dad like me?"

That did it, Rainbow punched Zephyr in the muzzle so hard that his nose started to bleed.

"NO! No Scootaloo doesn't want to have a dad like you because she already has an awesome future dad: Soarin Skies! He and I started dating around the time I adopted Scootaloo and I couldn't be happier because **he's** the one I've pined for all this time, NOT YOU!" Rainbow snapped. "When are you going to get it through your thick skull that I never had feelings for you, I never will have feelings for you, and in fact always found you as annoying as Tartarus!"

Zephyr lay there shaking, his eyes tearing up.

"Hey hey, what's going on here." Soarin finally showed up looking concerned. "Who...hey wait a minute, aren't you that pegasus Dash once zapped with lightning because he wouldn't do his fair share of the work?"

"Yes, Fluttershy's brother Zephyr Breeze, the one who has had this annoying crush on me since we were foals." Rainbow nearly growled.

"Oh right..." Soarin looked at Rainbow awkwardly. "Um, say Zephyr you'd best leave Dash alone from now on for the sake of your health. Trust me, you don't want to see her when she gets really mad."

"But..." Zephyr sobbed as he got up. "But Rainbows, I always loved you."

"If you really do love me you'll let me be with the stallion I truly love." Rainbow retorted as she pointed at Soarin. "Get over me and find somepony else, somepony who will actually enjoy your flirts instead of finding them disturbing like I do."

Still sobbing, Zephyr flew away.

"Gee...you think maybe you were too hard on him?" Soarin watched Zephyr leave sympathetically.

"Please, he never caught on to my obvious hints of annoyance before - seriously, I once pushed him away from me off the chair I was sitting on and not even that worked - so I figured I'd have to harshly reject him for him to finally get it." Rainbow scoffed. "Besides, he more than crossed the line when he added Scootaloo into his delusions. Trying to end up with me is one thing, but I'm the only one who says which stallions are good enough to be a dad for my daughter and which aren't."

"Gotcha." Soarin decided to drop the subject. "Anyway, sorry about being late. Had to help out with a few recruits who were having a tougher time than usual."

"No prob Soarin." Rainbow now smiled, calming down. "We still have plenty of time to hang out. But before we do...well...I know the Wonderbolts get their own tickets but..."

"Actually I didn't." Soarin smiled. "I was confused at first, but then I thought of you."

"Ah. You're right." Rainbow smiled as she held out the Plus One ticket. "Guess Princess Celestia knew that I would want to go with only you, especially since dad would rather stay home with mom who is still trying to keep her real identity as much a secret as possible."

"Princess Celestia's smart all right." Soarin chuckled. "So, I would love to go to the Gala with you. Actually I'd be happier going with you than the rest of the Wonderbolts, I could use a serious break from the reporters."

"I can understand that." Rainbow chuckled. "I mean I like media attention myself, but not when I'd rather spend the day hanging out with my friends, my daughter, and my very special somepony."

"My feelings exactly, except I'd have to change 'daughter' to 'surrogate daughter'." Soarin smiled.

"Only legally, otherwise you can call me daughter instead of surrogate daughter anytime you want." Scootaloo smiled.

"Only if you call me dad or some similar title in return." Soarin winked.

"It's a deal...dad." Scootaloo winked back.

After that, Soarin, Rainbow, and Scootaloo spent the day hanging out in Ponyville and in Rainbow and Scootaloo's home.

Oh, speaking of a similar situation I should explain that Rarity didn't get her own ticket due to Celestia knowing that Spike would want to invite her as his Plus One anyway. And she was right, the moment he got the ticket Spike went to ask Rarity to be his Plus One and she was more than happy to accept.

The rest of the Mane Six also invited their very special someponies - Flicker, Richie, and Arbor - as their Plus Ones and they were more than happy to go. Arbor was looking forward to checking out the gardens, Richie wanted to meet some nice Canterlot ponies like Fancy Pants, and Flicker wanted to experience as much Equestrian culture as possible. Besides, it wouldn't be any fun staying in the castle by himself anyway.

Oh yes, and of course Starlight was invited, with Sunburst as her Plus One, and even Trixie was invited. Same with Dragon Lord Ember and King Thorax, though without Plus Ones. Trixie didn't have any friends besides the ones who were going anyway, Ember wasn't close enough to the other dragons to bring one even as a friend, and Thorax didn't want to pick any favorites amongst his subjects.

A.N. Skies has become a popular last name for Soarin, so I decided to use it too. It's catchy and fits him anyway.


	3. The Day of the Gala

It was the next day, the day of the Gala in fact. Twilight and the other mares were on their way to Rarity to get ready, while Flicker and the other stallions were hanging out nearby talking. Twilight had already made a few carriages out of apples, so the stallions were discussing who should pull which carriage. Cheese was the only one not talking, due to being lost in his thoughts.

"You know Flicker, I'm actually a little surprise that you're okay with pulling a carriage." Richie had to admit.

"Well in the human world guys often drive their girlfriends to events like balls, so pulling a carriage actually isn't too different." Flicker explained.

"Drive...oh yeah you told us about cars." Soarin remembered. "They sound like cool vehicles too."

"They can be, depending on what they look like. Mostly they're just practical since they can take you almost anywhere."

"Even so I'm glad they don't exist in Equestria, they don't sound environmentally friendly." Arbor admitted.

"To be honest, most of them aren't." Flicker had to agree. "Humans have been working on more environmentally friendly versions though."

"That's good- Hey Cheese, what's wrong?"

"Huh?" Cheese looked up. "Oh...uh...nothing I...was just thinking about the Gala."

"Oh you've never been to a fancy party before." Flicker guessed. "It's okay, neither have I. In fact...I think Soarin and Richie are the only ones here who have been to fancy parties before."

"No kidding, I've been to the Gala many times and Twilight and her friends have definitely improved things." Soarin said. "So don't worry Cheese, it's a lot more fun now."

"It's been a while in my case, but sometimes I went with my parents to fancy parties. Usually depended on the party." Richie said. "Never went to the Gala before though, before my parents...died...I was too young."

"I'm sorry to hear that." Cheese said.

Soarin and Arbor agreed, though somehow sounded less sad than Cheese did about it. They already knew about Richie losing his parents though, so that was probably why.

"Thanks." Richie smiled.

"Wait...where's Sunburst?" Flicker suddenly noticed that a couple members of the male half of the party was missing. "And Spike?"

"Right here!" Spike said. "Sorry we're late, Sunburst was nervous about going back to Canterlot so I was calming him down...kinda." He then muttered.

Sure enough Sunburst still looked very nervous.

"Cool tux Sunburst." Richie smiled.

"Thanks." Sunburst smiled back.

Sunburst was wearing a dark blue tux with gold buttons shaped like stars and silver crescent moons decorating collar, cuffs, and bottoms so that the points faced the top edges. Richie was wearing a dark purple tux, though without any decorations since Richie insisted on not looking too fancy. Sunburst's was only decorated because he hoped that looking a little fancy would help him feel more confident...didn't work.

Cheese was wearing a goldenrod tux, Arbor was wearing a dark green tux with brown flower-shaped buttons, Soarin was wearing a blue tux since he and Rainbow were excused from performing so that they could just enjoy the Gala together, and Spike was just wearing his prince outfit. Flicker too was wearing a prince-like outfit, though more subtle since he was only Twilight's 'prince escort' at the moment. His outfit was black-colored, with gold music note-shaped buttons and gold epaulettes on the shoulders (heh, had to look up the name of those shoulder decorations).

As for the girls, the Crusaders were wearing gowns of the same style but in different colors to compliment their different coat colors. Apple Bloom's was soft peach, Sweetie Belle's was lavender, Scootaloo's was yellow, Babs Seed's was burgundy, and Gabby's was soft blue.

Diamond and Silver weren't official Crusaders, but they still asked for gowns of the same style as the Crusaders' (the Crusaders didn't mind at all, in fact they were honored). Diamond and Silver were the rare ones to have almost-matching colors in their gowns: mostly gold with with diamonds along the collar. The only difference was that Diamond's gown had a star stitched in silver on the chest and Silver's gown had a heart stitched in silver on the chest. They didn't want their gowns to be fancier, but their parents insisted on it (that is Filthy Rich did in Diamond Tiara's case, Rarity refused to let Spoiled Rich have any say in her daughter's gown). The Crusaders didn't mind though, they didn't say it but they had a feeling that Diamond and Silver's parents were hoping that their daughters would end up befriending Canterlot nobles in the future if not now.

Twilight and Rarity were just wearing their princess gowns to compliment Flicker and Spike's prince outfits. Fluttershy was wearing a tree-themed gown, mostly green with a few brown accents. Rainbow was wearing a blue gown with 'cloud' puffs around the neck and the bottom of the skirt. Pinkie was wearing a yellow gown with pink vertical stripes on the top and patterns of pink candies along the skirt. Applejack was wearing a Southern Belle-type gown similar to the one she wore when she was snapping Rarity out of her 'simple ways' phase, only it was in green colors with brown accents and her mane wasn't done up as fancy.

Starlight was wearing a lavender gown with purple stars around the waist and teal wavy lines starting from the stars and ending at the bottom of the skirt. Rarity would've gone a bit fancier, but Starlight insisted on her gown being mostly simple. Trixie wore a gown based on her cape, only without the hat.

Gilda's gown was really simple, just a lavender dress with a white waist. Thorax and Ember were the only ones not dressed up at all, since they weren't used to wearing clothes and their invites said that gowns and tuxes were optional in their case.

Speaking of them, Ember decided to just fly straight to the Gala later. Gilda however joined the girls to hang out with Rainbow Dash longer. As for Thorax...

"Hey Spike!" He grinned as he flew down.

"Thorax buddy!" Spike hugged him. "Great too see you, it's been too long."

"I know. Sorry for missing your coronation but I didn't find out about it in time." Thorax returned the hug. "Wow, you really have grown. Looks good on you."

"Thanks." Spike grinned. "Oh guys, this is Thorax. He's the new king of the Changelings."

"Glad to finally meet a good Changeling." Flicker smiled, going over to Thorax to shake hooves.

"That's right, Princess Celestia sent me a letter about the incident." Thorax remembered. "Sorry you had to find out about Chrysalis the hard way."

"It's okay, at least the rest of the Changelings have been reformed." Flicker said. "Twilight told me that you picked them up not long after we defeated Chrysalis."

"Right...Princess Celestia obviously told her about that." Thorax nodded. "But yeah, it turned out that Chrysalis lied to them about how she was defeated. You can just imagine their reactions when they found out."

"Eh, something tells me we don't want to imagine it." Soarin chuckled.

"Yeah...come to think of it, you don't." Thorax chuckled back. "Soarin Skies right? Spike told me about you and Rainbow Dash through a letter."

"Right. Gotta remember to remind Spitfire that the Changeling Kingdom is safe for ponies to visit now, in case you want to see us perform sometime."

"You bet. Same with Cheese Sandwich hosting a party there." Thorax then smiled at Cheese. "Spike told me about you as well."

"Neato, it'd be fun to host a party in a new location." Cheese grinned. "I'll be there as soon as my Cheesie Sense tells me to go there. Dunno when that'll be though..."

"Don't worry about it, we just recently finished getting used to our new lifestyle anyway. It took a long time since we had originally spent centuries in the lifestyle Chrysalis preferred."

"That reminds me, how are you and the other Changelings finding fruits and vegetables?" Spike asked.

"Oh they're delicious, though we're still learning how to cook them." Thorax rubbed the back of his head awkwardly.

"Fruits and vegetables?" Flicker said.

"Right, forgot to tell you: after most of the Changelings learned to satisfy themselves by sharing love they found out that they were now feeling hunger like we do." Spike explained. "So with Applejack's help we introduced them to farming."

"Interesting...I guess after their hearts were filled they were able to feel how empty their stomachs were." Arbor figured.

"Something like that." Thorax nodded. "Um...would you be Arbor Guard or Richie Fillyanthropy?"

"Arbor, he's Richie." Arbor pointed at Richie.

"Right, glad to finally meet you both."

"Same here." Richie smiled.

"And of course you all know me."

Yup, Discord had just arrived.

"Who could forget Klutzy Draconequus?" Thorax grinned.

"I thought we agreed never to mention that again..." Discord muttered, glaring at Thorax.

"What?" Soarin chuckled.

"Long story." Sunburst chuckled, remembering Starlight telling him about how she, Discord, Thorax, and Trixie saved everyone from Chrysalis.


	4. The Truth Behind Spike's Parents

Later on the guys and girls met up to go to the Gala together.. The 'royals' went in one carriage that was being pulled by Flicker, allowing Thorax to get to know Ember. They hadn't met before despite sharing Spike as a friend due to both being busy with royal duties.

"I'm really glad you two got a chance to meet." Spike grinned.

"Same here, any friend of Spike's is a friend of mine." Thorax smiled, offering his hoof. "If it wasn't for him I wouldn't have been able to make other friends or learn how to solve our problem of constant hunger."

"He helped me too, if it wasn't for him I wouldn't have become the next Dragon Lord." Ember smiled, accepting Thorax's hoof and shaking it. "And it turns out he was royalty all along, who knew? Though I did believe he'd be a good Dragon Lord when he first got the scepter, but he made the right decision in giving it to me after all. For one thing I understand not wanting to be separated from your family, dragons weren't big on friendship and love but even I'll admit that I love my dad. I love my mom too, but she died a long time ago."

"At least you have parents to love." Thorax sighed. "Chrysalis was definitely not the parental type..."

"From what I heard about her, I'm not surprised. Glad I'll never have to meet her." Ember winced.

"Be really glad." Thorax then changed the subject. "So what do you think of Spike's new height? As I already told him I think it looks good on him."

"Definitely, plus I want to see Garble's face the next time he sees Spike." Ember grinned.

"I do too, so we'll try to work out something." Spike grinned as well before wincing. "Don't really want him to find out that I really do have a pony for a mom though, I mean mom can handle him but I wouldn't be able to handle any mean words he says about her."

"I have to admit I am curious about that...dragons normally avoid ponies, so how was Princess Celestia able to adopt you?" Ember asked.

"Um...actually I don't know. I asked Twilight once but she only knows about her hatching me." Spike frowned. "As for mom, when Twilight wrote to her back when I first visited the Dragon Lands all she said was that she didn't want me to go there. I think that was just because she was afraid of the other dragons hurting me though."

"To be honest Spike, I think it's time you asked her how she got your egg." Twilight said.

"I think so too."

They soon arrived, and entered the palace together.

"Hello everyone." Celestia went down to greet them, followed by Luna.

"Hello mom...Aunt Luna? Aren't you normally on duty?" Spike asked.

"I am, I'm just taking a break." Luna smiled. "Things are quiet tonight so..."

"Ah... Um...mom...how did you get my egg?" Spike asked awkwardly.

Celestia's smile faded.

"I knew you were going to ask me that someday." She sighed sadly. "Follow me. The rest of you are welcome to come as well."

"Truthfully Princess Celestia, this feels like a family thing so I think it's best that the rest of us just enjoy the Gala." Applejack said.

Celestia nodded.

"I do want Rarity and Sweetie Belle to come though." Spike said. "Same with Ember and Thorax."

They agreed, and they - including Luna, Twilight, and Flicker - followed Celestia into her bedroom. Celestia opened a drawer and took out a photo of herself with two dragons, one male without wings and one female with wings. Spike's eyes widened as he saw the photo.

"Are...are these...?" He said almost breathlessly.

"Yes Spike, these are your parents. Argider and Horatia." Celestia nodded sadly. "They were dear friends of mine, being among the few dragons who didn't mind ponies. Unfortunately two other dragons found out about our friendship and didn't accept it. They got into an argument with your parents, and at one point accidentally caused part of the cave ceiling to land on your parents' eggs. Only one survived, and rolled away and out of the cave. I was flying by for another visit at the time, and managed to catch the egg as it fell. That egg was yours Spike."

Spike teared up a bit.

"So...so my siblings...?" He nearly sobbed.

"Not just them I'm afraid." Celestia teared up too. "After that accident your parents lost their tempers and attacked the other two dragons and they got into a huge battle. I yelled at them to stop but they didn't listen, and the entire cave ended up collapsing on them. Not knowing what else to do, and not wanting to give up my last link to them, I flew back to Equestria deciding to raise you myself. I couldn't get you to hatch though, so I decided to turn your egg into a test to find a unicorn who could. I knew that only a powerful unicorn would be able to free you from your egg...and, in turn, maybe have the ability to free my sister from her prison."

Spike continued shedding tears, even sobbing a little. Not only was he sad over the loss of his parents and siblings but he had also realized that he was really lucky in escaping death. Most everyone there comfortingly hugged Spike. Ember however just sympathetically put a hand on his shoulder.

"As I already mentioned to you I lost my mom when I was young. I also lost my aunt, uncle, & cousins when I was younger...too young to remember them. I don't even remember what happened to them, all I know was that we were related through my mom and aunt. I still miss all of them though." She said before turning to Celestia. "I have to admit, I'm impressed that you were willing to take care of a species you didn't know much about just because of your friendship with his parents. You really are a strong pony."

"Not strong enough to save Argider and Horatia though." Celestia hung her head.

"Hey come on, you were just protecting me. It wasn't your fault." Spike smiled comfortingly.

"Yeah, it was the fault of those two dragons who started the fight. They should've just left Argider and Horatia alone." Ember nodded.

Celestia slightly smiled at that. After recovering from the story, they headed back downstairs to join their friends at the Gala.


	5. Defending and Helping Friends

Speaking of which, some of the locals were shocked to find that Richie was dating Applejack.

"Richie, you come from one of the most esteemed families from Manehattan and you're dating a lowly farmer?" One of the local snobs asked.

"No, I'm dating an honest mare who loves family as much as I do." Richie glared, causing the local snob and his friends to back off a bit.

"Not to mention one of the mares who helps me solve Friendship Problems and so is technically a member of my court." Twilight glared at them as well.

"My apologies Princess Twilight, I meant no offense." The local snob bowed.

"Then you shouldn't have said anything." Twilight continued glaring.

"Um...right..." The local snob grew nervous. "I apologize again...excuse me please, there's somepony I need to talk to."

He quickly left, trying to save the last of his dignity.

"Heh, thanks you two." Applejack smiled. "I have to admit I enjoy it when a snob gets his ego deflated."

"So do I, and speaking of egos..." Spike muttered, seeing Blueblood approaching them.

"Old friend of my uncle's, that's my limit." Richie chuckled. "Applejack, would you like to dance?"

"Of course I would." Applejack smiled.

They left for the dance floor.

"Glad to finally meet up with you cousin." Blueblood smiled.

Twilight rolled her eyes and took this opportunity to look for Flicker. She had a feeling that some of the locals would look down on the fact that he's into rock and roll, and since Flicker never had much practice dealing with elite snobs Twilight figured that it'd be best to be nearby in case she needed to defend him.

"'Cousin'? I didn't know you knew." Spike frowned.

"Aunt Celestia told me weeks ago. I admit I was a bit offended not being invited to your coronation, but then I realized that she wanted me to look after things while she and Aunt Luna were gone." Blueblood smiled.

"That would explain why Spike later told us that he needed to fix things when he was first getting used to being part of the court." Rarity smirked in a lady-like way.

Spike sniggered while Blueblood frowned at her. Normally he ignored her presence or at least was polite to her due to knowing that she was good friends with Fancy Pants and Fleur dis Lee, but he had his limits.

"Well, sorry to cut the conversation short but I was just about to ask Rarity to dance with me-" Spike offered his hand to Rarity, who accepted it.

"What? You mean you're dating her?" Blueblood looked shocked.

"Well I'm not going to dance with you if that's why you're shocked." Spike smirked.

"That is not why!" Blueblood glared while Rarity giggled. "I am merely surprised that someone of royalty, adopted or not, would date a rude and terrible mare like her."

Spike really glared at Blueblood, actually making him a bit afraid.

"Listen 'cuz'," Spike said warningly, even showing his teeth. "The only rude and terrible pony around here is you, only the other elite snobs around here come close to being as awful. And need I remind you, mom, Princess Celestia, adopted me, making me her son. That makes me an official prince. You however are only distantly related to mom and Aunt Luna through their mom, so you're only an honorary prince. Meaning I outrank you, and so I have the power to get your title taken away from you if necessary. So don't make it necessary, got it?"

"Got it." Blueblood said weakly before deciding to leave.

"That was awesome Precious Scales." Rarity smiled.

"Not to mention therapeutic." Spike smiled, before realizing something and facepalming. "Aw man, Twilight's rubbing off on me."

Rarity giggled, and after a moment Spike laughed too. They then left to dance.

Most of the others were dancing as well, except for two: Pinkie and Cheese. Because Cheese had disappeared and Pinkie didn't know where he went. Flicker soon noticed due to being on his way outside.

"What are you looking for Pinkie?" He asked.

"Cheese, he just disappeared on me." Pinkie continued looking around. "I hope he didn't get another Cheesie Sense."

"I doubt it, maybe like me he had just gotten uncomfortable around the elite and left for some fresh air. That's where I'm heading, so I can look for him outside for you if you'd like."

"That'd be a huge help, thank you." Pinkie grinned before looking sympathetic. "The snobs around here didn't react nicely to you huh?"

"Yeah, turns out they don't love rock and roll, who knew?" Flicker chuckled, hinting that he had actually seen it coming. "Twilight defended me though, she told them that she doesn't care what music I like she just cares that I love her for who she is and not her status."

"Of course, that's way more important." Pinkie nodded. "Anyway, you go ahead and look outside in case he did need fresh air. I'll continue looking inside in case he was heading for the little colt's room and got lost."

"Right." Flicker nodded.

He headed outside, and after walking a bit he saw Cheese by himself with his head hanging down.

"Cheese?" Flicker said.

"Huh?" Cheese turned around a bit startled. "Oh, Flicker. Hi." He slightly smiled, looking a bit sad.

"Sorry, didn't mean to startle you. The elite crowd became too much for you huh? Same here." Flicker chuckled.

"Kinda, actually..." Cheese hung his head again.

"Something wrong?" Flicker caught on.

"Well...I do have to talk about this with somepony, might as well be a friend." Cheese gave in. "You know how a Cheesie Sense always tells me where to go?"

"Yeah?" Flicker nodded, not sure where he was going with this.

"Well, I got the usual one for Ponyville except with a new addition...a thumping in my chest." Cheese started to look shy. "I had no idea what it meant, until I got to the Gala with Pinkie and felt the thumping again."

"Oh, that was obviously your heart-" Flicker got it and smiled. "You're in love with Pinkie."

"Yeah...have been for years actually, I just...never got the courage to tell her." Cheese now blushed. "But now...well, I think the thumping is telling me that it's time to tell her."

"Then you should." Flicker said.

"But...but how can I? She'll never return my feelings anyway." Cheese teared up a bit. "I don't deserve her."

"You'll never know unless you try, and I believe you do deserve her. I mean take me...say, did you hear me tell the other guys where I'm from? I just remembered that you were lost in thought at the time."

"Actually I didn't hear you, why?" Cheese asked.

"Well, the truth is I'm not from this world. I'm not even a pony." Flicker admitted. "I'm actually a creature called a human, basically a furless ape. It's a long story, but a few years ago Twilight had to visit my world through a portal to retrieve something that was stolen from her. We met and fell in love, though we weren't able to officially be together at first. Mostly because she had her duties as a princess, and I had to finish school. Then not too long ago, after I finished school, I ended up missing her so much that I decided to move into this world to be with her, my parents joining me so that they wouldn't be separated from me."

"Wow...you and Twilight truly love each other." Cheese smiled.

"That we do." Flicker smiled back before becoming serious. "Now Cheese, would you be willing to do a similar thing for Pinkie? Would you be willing to give up traveling and spreading parties all over Equestria even if it's just to be with her?

"What do you mean 'even if it's just to be with her'?" Cheese frowned. "I'd give up everything for her, even traveling. Even Boneless 2! She's worth more than all the parties in Equestria!"

Flicker then smirked as Cheese's eyes widened.

"See? Your love for her is true so you do deserve her." Flicker smiled. "And since you deserve her, there's a good chance of her returning your feelings."

"I...I guess you made a good point there." Cheese smiled gratefully before sighing. "But I'm still scared to tell her."

"Hey I get that, I used to be very nervous around Twilight...come to think of it, she was also nervous around me." Flicker chuckled at the memories of them accidentally having bumped into each other in the past. "But if you don't tell Pinkie how you feel then she'll probably never become your girlfriend-uh, very special somepony. However if you do tell her, then there's a good chance she will become your very special somepony."


	6. Confessions

Cheese took a deep breath.

"Another good point." He admitted. "Okay, I'll tell her once we're alone."

"There you are, you were right after all Flicker." Pinkie smiled.

"Oh, I just remembered that Twilight wanted to dance with me. I'd better get going." Flicker smiled before winking at Cheese.

" _Me and my big mouth._ " Cheese winced in his head.

"No prob, see you later!" Pinkie waved happily, not having seen the wink. "Hey Cheesie, sorry if the Gala became too much for you. It does take some getting used to."

"It's okay Pinkie, it was still fun hanging out with our friends." Cheese smiled before looking nervous. "Actually, I had just gotten nervous about something and needed to calm down."

"Oh? What about, maybe I can help." Pinkie offered.

"I don't know if you can, you see I...I was nervous about...about telling you how I really feel." Cheese started blushing again as he looked away a little.

"What do you mean? I already know you like and idolize me." Pinkie said with confusion.

"And...and love you." Cheese finally admitted after a gulp, his heart pounding hard.

Pinkie's eyes widened, and to her surprise she felt her face getting hot: she was blushing as well.

"Gee...nopony has ever admitted that to me before...actually I never even though about having a very special somepony before." Pinkie was actually starting to feel shy and nervous herself, and not even she knew why. "Heh, probably because I spent almost my whole life focusing on throwing parties, cheering up ponies, and just being a good friend in general."

"Almost? I thought you were born a party pony." Cheese admitted with surprise.

"Nope, grew up on a rock farm. It runs in my family." Pinkie smiled despite still feeling shy and nervous for some reason; even her heart was pounding. "I didn't realize what I really wanted to do in life until Dash's first Sonic Rainboom, the one she made when we were all foals. The rainbow her Rainboom created made me smile and feel so joyful that I wanted to spread that joy everywhere, starting with my parents and sisters."

"Oh." Cheese smiled, starting to feel better. "Gee...then I guess we aren't so different after all. Truthfully I was scared to admit my feelings for you because I thought I wasn't good enough for you. Flicker helped me think otherwise though, and learning your backstory has helped as well."

"I'm glad, because that was a silly thought." Pinkie scoffed. "Of course you're good enough for me, I mean nopony else understands parties like we do and I've never met a stallion as handsome and charming as you-" She blushed again. "Oh...gee...I guess...I guess I grew to love you back as well and...didn't realize it. Well no wonder my heart's pounding, I was confused about that."

"My heart was pounding at first too." Cheese smiled, blushing a little from having been called handsome. "You really think I'm handsome and charming?"

"Think? I know you're handsome." Pinkie smiled. "I mean your coat is like cheddar, one of the best cheeses ever, and the only thing better than pink cotton candy is chocolate cotton candy." She pointed at their manes to emphasize her point. "And as for charming, well duh. Only a charming stallion could make me fall in love with him."

Cheese grinned at this, until Pinkie suddenly looked sad.

"Of course I want to become your very special somepony, and have you become mine, but what about your traveling?" She asked.

"Oh I can just settle down in Ponyville and only travel when I get a doozy of a Cheesie Sense, that is when a party desperately needs me." Cheese hoof-waved this. "I've grown to really like Ponyville anyway."

Pinkie beamed and hugged him. Cheese's heart started really pounding again as Cheese became overwhelmed by the amount of love he was feeling for and from Pinkie. Then, his heartbeat started to soften and speed up until it was no longer thumping. Now it was just beating fast. He realized that the thumping was telling him to settle down in Ponyville with Pinkie as well as tell her how he felt. He returned her hug, tearing up a bit.

"Are you okay?" Pinkie asked, noticing the tears.

"Yeah, these are happy tears because you love me back. I was scared that you never would." Cheese explained.

"Well why wouldn't I? Apart from my family you're the only one who's ever really understood me." Pinkie giggled.

Cheese smiled, until he looked into Pinkie's eyes. Pinkie's smile faded as well, both of them feeling as if they were under a spell. Their hearts started beating faster as they grew closer, until...they kissed. For that moment, they were the only ponies in existence.

And fortunately they were the only ponies in that area, since most of the guests were either inside, in the gardens (Fluttershy and Arbor of course), or in less secluded sections of the grounds. So no one disturbed Pinkie and Cheese, allowing them to finish their kiss until they recovered from their spell. After that, they decided to head back inside to enjoy the rest of the Gala together.


	7. The Rest of the Gala

Starlight, Sunburst, and Trixie were having a bit of a better time than the others had. No sad news about the past, and not even any snobs looking down on them. The elite already knew Starlight to be Twilight's student, Sunburst to be an important member of the Crystal Empire court (the fact that none of Sunburst's former classmates were there also helped), and Trixie to be a good performer.

After completely reforming Trixie was able to get her act together enough to even have successful performances in Canterlot in the past. Of course even Trixie wasn't fond of the stuffiness of the elite side of the Gala, but their friends' side of the Gala - especially Discord's performances - were still fun.

In fact Discord and Trixie had grown fond of each other - in a sibling-teasing sort of way - over the years and were really happy to hang out. Discord even let Trixie perform with him a little, which Trixie agreed to as long as she wouldn't be the victim of Discord's pranking nature during the performance. Fortunately Discord actually wanted Trixie to perform a little snarking routine with him, that is trade off sarcastic comments and playful insults. Trixie was more than happy to participate.

Oh, and the Crusaders? Well they were enjoying the Gala as usual, even Babs and Gabby. Yeah most of the guests being snobby or at least stuffy was irritating, but it was still fun hanging out with each other and their other friends/family members and they loved Discord's stand-up comedy and physical gags routine, as well as his snarking routine with Trixie. Silver Spoon was enjoying herself a bit more since she was already used to many details of a noblepony's life...but for some reason Diamond Tiara soon became almost depressed.

It didn't take long for the others to spot Diamond moping by the refreshments and drinking punch.

"Hey Diamond, what's wrong?" Gabby asked, going over to her.

"Well...do you and Babs remember us telling you that mom used to control me, including my behavior, until I finally stood up to her?" Diamond asked.

"Of course." Babs nodded, wincing disapprovingly about the fact.

"As you also already know mom has stopped controlling most of my life...except for one." Diamond sighed. "She's planning on marrying me off to a rich stallion from Canterlot once I'm old enough, and seeing what most of the rich Canterlot ponies are like...well, I'm now dreading it more than ever."

"Aw don't worry about it, even though your mom is bossy you don't have to obey her about marryin' somepony you don't love." Apple Bloom said.

"Yeah. Besides, won't you be old enough to live on your own by the time you're old enough to marry anyway?" Sweetie Belle pointed out.

"That's a good point, she can't control you at all if you're no longer living with her." Silver agreed.

"Yeah...that's true." Diamond smiled. "You're right, I don't really have to worry about an arranged marriage. Thanks girls."

"That's what friends are for." Babs smiled.

Everyone continued enjoying the Gala a while longer, and then stopped over at Joe's for their traditional post-Gala doughnuts. Even Celestia and Luna later stopped by. After happily congratulating Pinkie and Cheese for ending up together they continued talking and laughing a while longer...especially after Rarity told them what Spike did to take care of Blueblood.

"Excellent work nephew." Luna laughed. "It's about time someone knocked down his ego a peg."

"Even I agree, truthfully I've already been considering taking away his prince title." Celestia admitted. "I've only hesitated because he's still family and there's nopony else to replace his role in the court. But if he crosses the line again then I'll go through with it."

"Hmm...I think I know somepony who'd be good at Blueblood's job." Spike remembered. "I'll suggest him later during the next court session, first I want to talk to him about the idea. Plus I used 'taking away his title' as a threat, so it'd be best to wait until he crosses the line again anyway...wouldn't be surprised if he does soon despite my warning."

"Very well son, you've had good judgement in other ponies before so I'll trust you."

"What does that snob do anyway?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"He helps negotiate trades and relations with other kingdoms." Luna explained. "As rude as he is to non-elite ponies he can be charming to other nobles...even if he does only use that charm to increase his social standing."

They continued talking a bit longer, and then headed home. Even Cheese, since he decided to make Ponyville his home. Since the Cakes didn't have extra room he checked into a hotel, planning to look for his own place the next day.

However, as he found out the next morning, there were no buildings for sale. He quickly got a home though...thanks to Discord, who zapped up a silly-looking house near Sugarcube Corner. It looked like a giant present with balloon-shaped windows and a slanted roof that looked to be made out of confetti.

"Hey, you didn't do that for me and my parents." Flicker said, confused.

"Figured you wouldn't appreciate my sense of style, but I thought Cheese would like it." Discord explained.

"Actually, I love it!" Cheese grinned. "This house is perfect for a party planner!"

"It sure is!" Pinkie grinned.

"Thank you Discord." Cheese smiled.

"No need, always happy to meet those who enjoy my style." Discord shrugged with a smile. "Oh, it's also already furnished. Only grocery shopping needs to be done, since I don't know whether you have any allergies or not."

"Actually I don't, but thanks." Cheese said. "Want to help me get some food Pinkie?"

"You bet!" Pinkie smiled.

They headed over to the market to buy food.

"Say Cheese, I know we just started dating but I was thinking of the two of us taking a trip to see my family tomorrow." Pinkie said. "Well, at least my parents and Marble and Limestone, Maud travels so she'll have to wait."

"Um...I guess it's okay..." Cheese said nervously. "I mean I would love to meet them, I'm just a little nervous about how they'll react to me."

"Oh don't worry about that, they may be old-fashioned but they love me so as long as you make me happy - and you do - they'll be nice to you." Pinkie reassured him.

"That's good, but what if they don't like me?"

"Why wouldn't they? You're pretty much a male version of me, only you prefer cheese to pastries and candy."

"Okay, good point." Cheese chuckled. "But a party pony who's dating a relative is different from a party pony who is a relative."

"Uh...gee, you're right about that." Pinkie had to admit. "But even so don't worry, my family likes anything that makes me happy. And, again, you do."

"Okay...in that case sure, I'm up for it." Cheese smiled.


	8. Meeting Pinkie's Family

But despite Pinkie's reassurance Cheese was still nervous during the trip to the Pie Rock Farm. He became more nervous once they finally arrived.

"Pinkamena!" Cloudy Quartz hugged her. "Well this is a nice surprise, you didn't write to say you were coming."

"Only because I just got the idea yesterday and figured that I'd arrive before the letter anyway." Pinkie giggled. "Mom, dad...hey, where's Limestone and Marble? Working the fields?"

"Actually they're making sure that your room and Maud's room are ready." Igneous Rock said. "We saw you and this stallion from the window as you two were arriving. So, Pinkamena, who is your friend?"

"Remember me writing to you about that misunderstanding with a stallion named Cheese Sandwich?" Pinkie asked.

"Yes...oh of course, we should've guessed from his Cutie Mark." Cloudy noticed it. "So you're Cheese Sandwich."

"Yes...ma'am..." Cheese said awkwardly.

"Don't mind him, he's just a bit nervous." Pinkie explained. "You see, we came because we became very special someponies a couple days ago, during the Gala."

"Ah." Igneous said seriously. "So, you're dating our daughter?"

"Only because she loves me back sir." Cheese said.

"Never mind the sir and ma'am, just call us Igneous and Cloudy." Igneous actually smiled. "Pinkie already told us that it was one of her parties that inspired you to become a party pony, so Cloudy and I already had our suspicions that there was a special connection between the two of you. And we are certain that the Pairing Stone will prove it, so we're happy to welcome you into the family."

"Pairing Stone?" Cheese turned to Pinkie questioningly.

"It's a magical stone that proves whether two ponies are meant to get married or not." Pinkie explained. "All rock farming families have one."

"And I can't wait to get started on your wedding present." Cloudy smiled.

"Oh..." Cheese blushed. "Um...not that I don't want to marry Pinkie but...well we just barely started dating so..."

"Oh don't worry, we already learned through our Apple cousins that there are many different cultures out there." Igneous reassured him. "Including cultures that obviously don't rush into marriages. Out of respect for your culture we're fine with waiting until you're ready before even testing the Pairing Stone on you and Pinkamena."

"Oh, good." Cheese said with relief. "I mean I just want to make sure that the timing is right before even thinking about proposing."

"A mature decision." Cloudy nodded.

"I guess so, but for the record I can't imagine Pinkie marrying a pony who isn't into parties." Limestone remarked, just nearing them with Marble. "So you'd better be ready soon before Pinkie finds another party pony."

"Please Limestone, even if I do he won't be as great as Cheese." Pinkie scoffed.

"Okay, just warning him." Limestone shrugged.

"So, Cheese, where is your culture from?" Igneous asked.

"It was from Manehattan, and I'm glad I'm not living there anymore." Cheese frowned bitterly.

Everypony else was surprised. Well, except for Pinkie who had already guessed why Cheese said that.

"You see...I was a shy foal and...didn't have any friends until Pinkie inspired me to become a party pony." Cheese admitted, calming down.

"What about your parents?" Limestone asked.

Tears filled Cheese's eyes as he hung his head.

"I...I'm an orphan." He choked. "Mom and dad died when I was little and nopony wanted to adopt me...that's why I was able to go off on my own before even getting my Cutie Mark."

"Oh Cheese..." Pinkie hugged him, close to tears as well.

Cloudy, Igneous, Marble, and even Limestone looked sympathetic.

"I'm sorry to hear that." Limestone said sincerely.

"Mm-hmm." Marble sadly nodded.

Igneous and Cloudy whispered to each other for a second and then turned back to Cheese.

"Cheese, if you want to you are more than welcome to call me dad and Cloudy mom." Igneous said.

Cheese stared at them, stunned, and then hugged them.

"I'd love to...dad." He almost sobbed.

Igneous and Cloudy returned the hug, and Pinkie, Marble, and even Limestone joined in.

Cheese and Pinkie stayed there for a few days, and then headed back to Ponyville. Pinkie was still needed at Sugarcube Corner, and Cheese wanted to get started setting up his 'Party Planner Assistant' business.

Yes 'Assistant', of course Cheese would never take the party planning role in Ponyville away from Pinkie. But now that he was going to be living in Ponyville he figured that he might as well become Pinkie's assistant. Not only because he could never resist helping plan a party, if not actually planning it himself, but also because he figured that it'd be good for his and Pinkie's relationship if they got used to working together on a more regular basis. Pinkie of course agreed, and was more than happy to let him become her assistant. To her, the only thing more fun than planning a party was planning a party with your friends...and very special somepony.

Oh yes, and Cheese and Maud soon met. Maud made one of her visits to Ponyville around a week after Cheese and Pinkie got back from the farm. Cheese, like everyone else had been, was surprised to find out that Maud was Pinkie's sister but got used to her quicker than Pinkie's friends did when they first met her. Mostly because he quickly caught on to how much Maud loved Pinkie, which was the most important detail in his opinion. In turn Maud quickly grew to love him like a brother, and even nicknamed him Cheesie.


End file.
